Life Afterwards
by Hieru
Summary: With the Second Sorceress war behind them, everyone seeks out their own life in their own ways. Stand-alone chapters; on hiatus. Seifer x Squall; Laguna x Rinoa; Irvine x Zell (so far)
1. Chapter 1

**Life Afterwards**

Part One

_Disclaimer: None of the character in this fic is mine. They all belong to our beloved SquareSoft Co. I'm just a humble Final Fantasy VIII addict who are writing this for fun, so please don't sue me since I'm making no profit out of this fic._

* * *

With a roar from the sky, the sky darkened, fortelling the coming of a thunderstorm. The two figures moved and looked up to the sky. As if on cue, rain drops start falling down madly, soaking them from head to toe.

"We'd better go back," said the tall former Sorceress Knight.

The shorter brunette nodded, and shivered as the chilling wind blow through his slender, yet muscular figure. The Sorceress Knight noticed, and draped his white trench coat over the shorter man.

"I told you to grab an extra jacket, and you wouldn't listen."

"...I didn't know the weather's gonna..." the brunette paused. "...Whatever."

The blonde laughed as he walked back towards the giant Garden resting on the field, holding the shivering brunette in his arms while blocking some rain for him. "You're not giving that figure of speech up, are ya, Squall?"

Squall Leonhart rolled his eyes, and continued to walk in silence. Figure of speech? Since when that '...whatever' thing became his figure of speech?

The two finally made it back to the Garden without being attacked by any monsters. Balamb Garden had settled back to where it was before the Sorceress War, thanks to the mechanical genius Zell Dincht, though not many people would've suspected that. The martial artist always radiated an aura of immaturity, not to mention stupidity, to put it bluntly. But under that mask of ignorance was a hidden master of technology. Maybe that's also why he was appointed as the Director of Technology there in Balamb Garden.

After the Sorceress War, the world had gone under a drastic change. People started to realize the importance of an alliance between nations and the security of the world. The leader of the major Nations- Galbadia, Esthar, and Balamb- formed a group of guards called 'the National Safety Patrol' to travel around the world using Ragnorak series to help prevent warfare and future Sorceress attacks. The two active Gardens were now lending forces to rebuild the Trabia Garden, and they also formed a group of special force called the 'Elite SeeDs.'

The Elite SeeDs featured the people that defeated both Adel and Ultimacia, and their main purpose was to investigate dangerous situation, help perform SeeD tests, occasionally instruct the SeeD cadets, and ultimately, to stop the Sorceress' in case they struck again. The Elite SeeDs now contained all the people involved in the Ultimacia War, and the former Sorceress Knight and his posses.

Some other minor changes included the public surface of Esthar and its active political movement in the world, the reconstruction of the Orphenage and the progressive movement of the Centra continent.

Balamb Garden itself had gone under some changes as well. The return of his wife had caused Cid to retire, leaving the Balamb Garden in Quistis and Xu's hands. He originally wanted to let Squall handle the Garden, but the brunette firmly refused this offer, suggesting to let Quistis, who had the experience and ability to lead, take over the headmaster's job. Quistis then asked Xu to help her, knowing that being both Elite SeeDs and the headmaster would exhaust her.

Irvine Kinneas went back to the Gabaldia Garden, while Selphie Tilmitt joined the Trabia Reconstruction Group, claiming that she will not rest until the last brick of Trabia Garden was set down by her. Rinoa Heartilly resided in Esthar, helping the scientists there explore her Sorceress ability. Zell Dincht moved back to Balamb city to spend time with his mother, though he drove to Balamb Garden everyday to work.

"Man, we're all soaked!" Seifer exclaimed, squeezing water out of his trench coat and cursing at the weather the same time.

Squall glanced around the Garden, seeing that it was past the curfew time the Balamb Garden set, and frowned a little.

"Keep your voice down, you might wake some cadets up," he scolded softly.

Seifer looked up from the puddle of water he just made on the floor, and glanced at his watch. "Whoa, that late already? We sure stayed a long time."

"Let's just go... your clothes are not going to dry by simply grinding it with your hand." Squall said, heading towards their room.

Seifer shrugged, and follow the shorter man. He let a silly little smile tug on his lips, and admired his lover at the same time. It was the first time in his life that he has ever experienced happiness, not to mention the feeling of a family and love. To tell the truth, he had never felt any better, and he's intended to keep it like this.

It all happened a year ago, if his memory didn't fail him. Then again, after the time compression, who cared about time anymore? At least he didn't. He recovered from his injuries after a long rest, and was wondering around the Globe until he traveled back to Balamb. Quistis accepted his re-application as a SeeD cadet, of course, under some restrictions. He was required to pass the SeeD written exam upon his entrance, and the field exam a week after.

_"You better pass these tests to prove to the others if you're worthy enough to come back," Quistis said with an authoritive tone, "You know that some people still hold grudges against you because of the Ultimacia War, and they didn't care if you were under her control."_

And so, he did it, and was accepted back as a normal SeeD. Over the three months period, he helped out the Elite SeeDs in every possible way, and was finally promoted as the Elite SeeDs. Raijin and Fujin, however, had no trouble getting their promotion right after they pass the SeeD exam, which Seifer had mockingly complained on how Quistis and Xu was giving special treatment to his posses.

Once he was accepted back to Balamb, he was reaquainted with Squall, the first and only love he had ever had in his life. He kept it a secret for 17 years, and he wanted to keep it that way, as long as Squall was happy with whoever he was with. But, he soon notice the friction between Rinoa and Squall, how she kept wanting to change him and he couldn't comply.

Squall became best friend with Seifer quickily, which surprised everybody, even Seifer himself. Their rivalry seemed to be in the past, and Squall would sometimes talk to Seifer about how hard he was trying to work the relationship with Rinoa out. It hurted Seifer deeply, not only because the one he loves was sitting in front of him talking about the woman, but more about the suffering Squall was going through. He had gave Squall advices, consults, and encouragements. Hynes knows how HARD that is! But if it would bring the smile on the brunet, or even just to wipe away the darkness engulfed the brunet because of his depression, Seifer would do it wholeheartedly.

Finally, Rinoa couldn't take it anymore, and Squall didn't want to save the relationship, as they broke up at last. Rinoa accepted Laguna's invitation, and moved to Esthar to join the science project Esthar was doing on the Sorceress' power. Squall devoted himself to the jobs at Elite SeeDs, and involved in some of the political issues happening around the world.

And Seifer just supported Squall in every way, thus earning himself a nick name of "The Lion's Posse," which he didn't mind at all.

After about six months, Squall couldn't fight with his curiosity anymore. He entered Seifer's room one day, when Seifer was working his butt off on creating a new SeeD written exam.

_"...Seifer?"_

_Seifer looked up, surprised to see Squall standing in front of him. "Yeah?"_

_"I need to ask you a question."_

_Shrugging, he gestured Squall to sit on the bed, while he stood up from his chair and poured two cups of coffee for both of them. "Shoot."_

_Squall stared at Seifer, a puzzled look in his eyes. "...Why?"_

_"Why... what?" now it's Seifer's time to get confused._

_"Why do you... care?"_

_Seifer stopped his drinking, and looked at Squall from the steam of the coffee. His mind spinned to find the best way to answer the brunet, but he couldn't find anything besides the truth._

_"Seifer?" Squall asked again, since Seifer wasn't answering._

_"...Because I love you." Seifer muttered, his words mostly to the black liquid, instead of the beauty in front of him. Goddamn this was hard..._

_Squall leaned towards Seifer, didn't hear what Seifer was saying. "Repeat?"_

_"Damn, you sound like Fujin without the capitalized words," Seifer joked, trying to change the subject._

_Squall narrowed his eyes, "Don't even try, Seifer Almasy. What did you say while ago?"_

_Seifer sighed, "You're not letting me go, are ya?"_

_"No."_

_Seifer sighed again, totally defeated. "Fine," he said, "But this might jeopardize our friendship."_

_"No it won't. Just spit it out," Squall said firmly._

_After a long pause, Seifer finished his coffee, and knew that he couldn't hide behind his mug anymore. He placed the cup down on the table, and looked at Squall with burning passion in his eyes. "... I care because..." he paused, "Because I love you."_

_Awkward silence filled the room, as Squall stared at Seifer, his emotion unreadable. Seifer stood up, and got himself another cup of black coffee, and stayed at the counter to sip it._

_Finally, Squall broke the silence. "You're...gay?"_

_That completely took Seifer by surprise, causing him almost spitting out the coffee in his mouth. "No! Hell no! You see me going after that chicken-wuss or that Irvine Kinneas!?"_

_Squall furrowed his eyebrow, "Wait, then why-?"_

_"Because I love _YOU_, not men! You just _HAPPENED _to be a man!"_

_Squall's frown deepened, "What, is it _MY _fault!?"_

_Shaking his head madly, "NO! I'm not saying it's your fault! No!" he took a deep breath to calm himself down, "This conversation is going nowhere..."_

_"You're telling me."_

_Awkward silence again, and AGAIN, Squall broke the silence. "I need time to think about this."_

_This time, Seifer was dumbfounded. "HUH?"_

_"Like I said, I need time to think about this."_

_"About... what?"_

_Squall groaned, slapping his forehead dramatically. "About my feeling, what do you think!?"_

_Seifer stared at Squall with his jaw dropped, "You're not gonna... like, what was the word I'm looking for? Feel disgusted?"_

_"Why should I?" Squall asked._

_"Why should... I DON'T KNOW!" Seifer started waving his arms madly, his mind was in a mess. "Because that you should?! That you're not gay and some man like you!? Especially if that person is me!? You have tons of reasons to feel disgusted, dammit! Why aren't you?"_

_Squall got up of Seifer's bed, putting the half-drank cup on Seifer's table. "You're weird," he said before he left the room._

_Seifer stared after the closing door, his mouth never closed from the shock. Finally, he broke down into a hysterical laugh, and crashed to his bed, hugging the bedding that Squall sat on. "Me!? Weird!? What!?"_

And that was about four months ago.

Squall avoided Seifer for an entire week. He wasn't present at the daily Elite SeeDs meeting, he wasn't at his lectures, and nobody had seem him for an entire week. It was as if the man just disappeared from the face of the Planet. Seifer blamed himself solely for this, and was deeply depressed.

A week later, Squall showed up in the cafetaria, and dragged Seifer away to the secret place that Quistis took him before in front of everyone at dinner time.

_"What's going on, Squall?" Seifer asked, his voice full of concern, "Where were you the whole week?"_

_"Bend down," Squall ordered._

_"Huh"_

_"Bend down! You're too tall!_

_Seifer obeyed, and bended so he's about Squall's height. Squall then took off his Griever pendant and put it on Seifer, adjusting it so it lands right in the middle of Seifer's chest, and smile happily like a little boy. "There."_

_Seifer gaped. "S...Squall? What's... what's this?"_

_Squall had this really cute smile on his face, totally out of character, but enough to make Seifer want to cover his lips over the shorter boy's. "Well, you know where I was for the whole week?"_

_"No..."_

_"I went back to the Orphenage, and talked to Matron."_

_Seifer nodded, dumbfounded._

_Squall continued, "I told her what you said, and asked her what I should do to sort out my feelings, since I'm not good at it."_

_"Uh-huh..."_

_"So she helped me, and this is the answer."_

_Seifer felt that he was kind of getting what Squall was saying, yet he was afraid to jump to conclusion. After all, he had been wanting Squall's love for as long as he can remember, but all Squall seemed to do was to reject him and push him away. And now... is this a dream? If so, please don't let him wake up now..._

_"Seifer?" Squall waved in front of the dazed-out Sorceress Knight. Seeing Seifer wasn't responding, Squall tip-toed and kissed Seifer on the lips quickily._

_That brought Seifer back, but the impact was too shocking that Seifer's eyes widened, and he jumped. Appearantly, jumping because of shock and/or if the person wasn't mentally prepared was definetly NOT a good idea. Seifer landed on his butt, and sat there with his jaw dropped._

_Squall kneeled down, and looked at the stupid-looking Seifer. "Don't tell me this is my fault again," the brunette said._

_Seifer stared at Squall, and looked back down to the Griever pendant. He started chuckling softly, and ended up throwing his head back, laughing his ass off. Squall chuckled too, and they just sat there, laughing._

That's how Seifer and Squall got together. To their surprise, their friends weren't shocked at the news of them being a couple at all. In fact, Zell even commented with a 'DUH!' and Quistis with a 'Finally!'

Seifer came out of the bathroom, and found Squall sitting on the bed reading some of his student's homework, and checking mistakes every now and then. Seifer snuggled next to Squall, as the brunette shut down the laptop.

"We better get some sleep, Squall. We still had that mission tomorrow," Seifer said, stifling a yawn.

Squall nodded, "...Whatever."

"Will you quit that!?" Seifer laughed.

"No way."

The light was shut off.

-End of Chapter I


	2. Chapter 2

Life Afterwards

Part Two

**Disclaimer: None of the character in this fic is mine. They all belong to our beloved SquareSoft Co. I'm just a humble Final Fantasy VIII addict who are writing this for fun, so please don't sue me since I'm making no profit out of this fic.**

* * *

With a knock on the door, the door to the President's office was opened, and the raven-haired girl walked in smoothly with a plate of hot coffee and some homemade snacks.

The man looked up from his pile of paper works, and smiled at his fiance. He just celebrated his 42th birthday, which was when he had proposed to her on that day. Caught completely by surprise, she agreed happily, and they had set the wedding for June, which was around two months away.

"Why aren't you in bed yet?" he asked, helping her set the tray on the side table.

She smiled and gave him a quick peck on his lips, "I was worried about your long nights, so I decided to make you some snacks before I go to sleep."

The President of Esthar returned the smile, and felt warmed by her kind gesture through and through. "Rinoa, you shouldn't have..."

Rinoa shook her head, and poured the coffee from the pot into a china cup. Adding two cubes of sugar and no cream, just the way he liked it, she handed to him, "It's ok, Laguna. I want to. Besides, you've been working on freeing Timber from Galbadia for a long time now, you deserve a break."

Accepting Rinoa's offer, he snatched a cookie from the plate, and threw it into his mouth with a comical expression. Rinoa chuckled, and extended her hand to wipe the crumbs off the side of his lips.

"Well, Timber deserves to be freed. It's not a colony. Besides, you grew up there, so I'm being selfish by working extra hard on freeing them. Unfortunately, President Deling was tougher than his old man, and sometimes, God I just wish I can knock some moral sense into that man's thick skull."

Rinoa laughed, patting Laguna on the shoulder. "Ok... I assume you'll come to bed when you're done?"

Kissing Rinoa's lips lovingly, he nodded. "Yeah. I had to get this proposal ready for tomorrow. But I'm almost done. Go to sleep first."

She stepped out of the gates of Esthar Airstation, and was greeted by the long-haired, still handsome looking man, who's her ex-boyfriend's father.

_"Rinoa! Glad to have you here!" he exclaimed, taking her light carry-ons and hugged her, kissing her on the cheek politely._

_Rinoa Heartilly smiled, "Thank you, President Loire. Pleasure's all mine."_

_Laguna laughed, "Hey! Don't go all formal on me! I hate that, ya know?" he gestured to the two men next to him, "You've all met before. Kiros, Ward."_

_She nodded in acknowledgement, "Mr. Seagul, Mr. Zaback." Being polite was always the best thing, especially since the relationship here was awkward. She, after breaking up with Squall because of numerous of fights, escaped Balamb to his father's country in the name of science, but in truth only to find a sanctuary for her heart to calm down._

_"..." Ward looked at the slender black man next to him, unable to speak because of his injuries that happened so long time ago._

_As if he could understand his lover's thought, Kiros said immediately, "Ward says that you don't need to be formal around us. You can just call us Kiros and Ward, and I'm sure Laguna won't mind if you call him by his first name."_

_"..."_

_"Or," Kiros translated, "his nick name we gave him-'Baka.'"_

_Rinoa burst out laughing, the first time after she and Squall broke up a month ago._

_Laguna looked at his old crush's daughter, and commented without thinking, "You're beautiful when you laugh, Rinoa. You should do that more often."_

_Rinoa blushed and looked away, feeling flattered yet uncomfortable. "Um... maybe we should get going... I still need to talk to Dr. Odine..."_

_Laguna slapped his forehead dramatically, "Oh my GOD! Where are my manners!" he smiled apologetically at Rinoa, "I'm sorry, Rinoa. This way. Dr. Odine was expecting you, and, if I may say so, he was quite impatient."_

That was about, what, a year ago? Rinoa thought to herself as she walk back to her bedroom - THEIR bedroom. Although she was very conservative, and strongly believed in no sex before marriage, she still couldn't hold her passion and eventually gave in on the night Laguna proposed to her. They had been sleeping in the same room for about three months now, and she had not once regret about her decision. She was 22 years old, and deeply in love with a man about 20 years older than her. Adding onto that, he's her ex-boyfriend's father, which means in two months, she's going to be her ex-boyfriend's stepmother.

What irony this was! During the Ultimecia War, she thought that Squall was the one, and that she was so in love with him that if he ask her to marry him, she'll agree without a doubt. But they broke up! The perfect couple in all their friend's eyes were not so perfect after all, as they each went their separate ways, though still being friends.

It struck her greatly when Squall suggested to break up, and she was very depressed. After all, she _DID_ loved him, and she thought that changing him was good for him. But Squall was hard to change, and unbelievably stubborn. At first, he had tried to comply with her, trying his best to talk about his feelings more. But soon, she discovered that he would rather talk to Seifer Almasy than her, and she was enraged by that. Not only did she felt betrayed, she knew about Seifer's feeling towards the brunette even before she got involved with Squall. It was normal for a girl to worry, wasn't it?

She guessed she was afraid to lose Squall, because he was her prince, and a man every woman ever wanted. But now when she reminisced the past, she laughed at her immaturity and foolishness. Why didn't she figure out that Squall was just trying to get Seifer's attention in the first place when he showed interest in her, and later saving her during the Ultimecia War only was because of his sense of duty?

She smiled warm-heartedly as she entered the giant, luxuriously bathroom, thinking of her fiancé. Laguna was the best thing that had ever happened to her, next to Squall's romantic promise in the garden of the Orphanage. Laguna guided her out of her little depressing shell, and gave the happiness she lost because of his son back to her.

After she arrived in Esthar, she got involved with Dr. Odine's science project immediately, and kept herself busy so that she wouldn't think about her ex-boyfriend. Dr. Odine was no gentleman. In fact, he was a geek, and he was practically married to his science. Everyday Rinoa had to face the endless tests, analyses, and experiments. She was drained both mentally and physically.

But Laguna would invite her to dinner every night, sometimes with Kiros and Ward, sometimes alone. His charm and chattiness would light up her day, and his passionate stare and his gentle care would melt her heart.

___Am I going mad!? she thought to herself. Falling for Squall's father!? He's 20 years older than me!_

_But she did, and she hid it to her best. It wasn't until one night that Kiros and Ward dragged Laguna into her room, and dumped him on the floor and locked the door that she found out he had the same feeling towards her. He confessed about his love for Squall's mother, Raine, and her own mother Julia. She was surprised that he knew her mother._

_"But are you taking me as a substitute for my mother?" she had asked, trying to play it cool though the thought burned her heart in dismay. _

_Laguna shook his head, "At first I thought I was, and I keep telling myself I'm just favoring you since you're Julia's daughter. But time passed and I was drawn to you by your sensitivity, your passion, and your energy. You are an incredible woman, Rinoa, and though I adore your mother, I think you outshine her in many ways."_

_Rinoa blushed, her heart filled with joy. "I can't play the piano," she joked, letting Laguna hold her in a tight embrace._

_"Hey, I don't care," he tilted her face, and looked deeply into her eyes, "But just for your information, I can."_

_She giggled, and let him kissed her._

_Later on, she found out about Seifer and Squall, and was happy for them. She knew they would come together at last, and was ready to congratulate them without any grudges. Squall was shocked at how well she had taken the news, and accepted her friendship gratefully._

_But there lied the question of the fact that she, as Squall's ex-girlfriend, was in love with his father. She didn't want to jeopardize Laguna's relationship with Squall, which was still under construction at that point. So she cleverly avoided being in the same place with Squall and his father, just so that both Laguna and her wouldn't feel uncomfortable._

_Seifer noticed immediately, since he was extra-sensitive at relationships and confronted her. She admitted, and begged him not to tell Squall until Laguna and Squall's relationship was stronger. Seifer admired her thoughtfulness, and agreed. Frienship between her and Seifer was built almost at that instant, and she found the former Sorceress Knight incredibly fun to hang around with. His dark humor and cockiness often amused her, and they went out as neutral friends several times when both him and Rinoa had time off. Squall kept joking that he'll get jealous, but he knew better that Seifer loved him and only him, so Squall wasn't worried at all._

_Things were going great for Rinoa. Her life brightened because of her new boyfriend, and the science experiments with Dr. Odine was no longer stressful. She had learned how to control her sorceress power, and had used it several times for her Elite SeeDs duty. Laguna often worried about her health. He fretted that being involve in both the 'Sorceress Research Project' and the Elite SeeDs, Rinoa would collapse because of the pressure she was bearing._

_Rinoa proved Laguna's worry useless. She was a strong woman, and she had endless energy. She felt that helping out both Dr. Odine and the Elite SeeDs was something she should do, and it gave her a sense of great accomplishment._

_"I'm a sorceress," she once told Laguna, "and that's a dangerous gift. I should use it wisely, and give back to the people who were hurt by the previous sorceresses."_

_She did it, and the people of the world now viewed sorceresses differently than before. Though still in fear of them to take over the world, they no longer thought of every sorceress to be an evil one._

_Several months ago, Laguna hit his 42nd birthday. He didn't want to make such a big fuss about it, so he only invited members of the Elite SeeDs and his close friends. They had a little party, where some mild alcohol were involved. After Laguna blew out the candle, Selphie and Zell urged Laguna to make a wish._

_Laguna had a mischievous smile tugging on his lips. "Well, I know my wish can come true if somebody agrees to it..."_

_Selphie jumped, "WOO! That sounded so exciting! Hurry! Say it!"_

_Smiling, Laguna took out a velvet jewelry box, and walked over to kneel in front of Rinoa. Everyone gasped, and Rinoa frozed there, not believing her eyes. Laguna opened the box, revealing a beautiful diamond and sapphire engagement ring._

_"Rinoa, will you be my wife?" he asked earnestly, looking up at the love of his life. "I know I'm way~~~~~~ older than you, but I love you dearly, and want to commit the rest of my life to you. Please, Rinoa?"_

_Rinoa looked at Laguna, tears starting to form in her eyes. She blushed, and nodded shyly, extending her left hand to let Laguna slipped the beautiful ring onto her index finger. Laguna stood up, and embraced Rinoa, kissing her deeply._

_Seifer sighed, "About time." He felt truely happy for his friend and his "father-in-law." They've been joking about this new term for Laguna for a while._

_Squall looked up to Seifer unapprovingly, "You knew?"_

_"Yes, my love," Seifer whispered to Squall's ears, "And I'm sorry for not telling you, but Rinoa made me promise. She didn't want to jeopardize your newly-built relationship with your father."_

_Looking at the embraced couple, Squall shook his head, "Still, I don't really think this is right..."_

_Seifer squeezed Squall's hand lovingly, "Hey, I'm sure she won't mind if you don't call her mother. Besides, as long as they're happy, why not?"_

_"They're 20 years apart..."_

_"We're gay."_

_That about shut the brunette up._

_The rest of the Elite SeeDs accepted their love with open arms. They were all taken by surprise, of course, and Quistis was worry about the age difference as well. But as time went on, both Laguna and Rinoa proved to be meant for each other, so the questioning voice died down._

_Squall took the longest time to accept the fact that Rinoa would soon to be his step-mother. He had a hard time facing Rinoa and Laguna together, but with the help of Seifer, he got around it and wished them happiness. Rinoa burst in tears when Squall told her that he refuse to call her mother, but he was glad that Laguna found her, and he was happy for both of them._

_Laguna snuggled into bed, careful so that he won't wake Rinoa up. Unfortunately, thanks to the experiences from the Ultimecia War, her senses were sharp and keen. She snapped her eyes open, and turned to her fiance._

_"Hey," he greeted softly._

_Rinoa whispered, "Hey," Her voice full of sleepiness. "You're done for tonight?"_

_Laguna shrugged, making himself comfortable with sheets covering him, wrapping his arms around Rinoa's waist. "Well, the proposal's done. We'll just have to see what Deling's reaction is."_

_Rinoa sighed, "Hopefully he'll finally accept it. This is what, your fifth proposal?"_

_"Sixth," Laguna scoffed. "Can't you just use your sorceress power to zap him back to a human being?"_

_"Honey, you know my powers don't work that way. Besides, I shouldn't anyway. It's unmoral."_

_"I know I know... But it'll just make things so much easier if you could!" Laguna whined._

_Rinoa chuckled, "Go to sleep, my love. You're tired."_

_"Good night, Rinoa..." with that, Laguna closed his eyes, and was fast asleep in Rinoa's arms._

_Rinoa looked at his childish face, and smiled softly. Stroking his head, she thought to herself: Maybe it'll be better if she tells him about Squall's new little sister tomorrow after the World Conference... Can't wait to see what her love's reaction would be..._


	3. Chapter 3

**Life Afterwards**

_**Chapter III**_  
_**Hieru Youko**_

Irvine opened his eyes, and turned to look at the alarm clock on the night stand. 3 am. Gee, what a wonderful hour to wake up. He sure could lose time...

He moved slightly, trying to get off the bed, only to discover that he was trapped by his lover's arm.

"He really has bad sleeping habits..." he muttered, carefully removing the tatooed martial artist's arm, and left for the bathroom and the quick shower it promised.

When he got back, Zell was still sleeping. Irvine deliberately plopped down onthe mattress, to see if he could wake his lover up. Nope, he was still sleeping. Sometimes, Irvine envied Seifer about how he could always get Squall's full attention, even if the Lion was sleeping. As for him, well, Zell seemed to like sleep and hot dogs more than he liked Irvine...

Sighing, Irvine laid down next to Zell, and stared at his lover's childish face. He leaned in, and bit Zell on his shoulder just to make himself feel better. Zell squirmed, a little frown appeared on his face, and went right back to sleep.

::I'm pathetic...:: Irvine told himself before he drifted off to slumberland.

_Life was quiet. Well, almost too quiet. The Elite SeeDs were the best of the best, yet to Irvine, it' was the most boring job in the world. All they did was tmeet daily about an hour, listen to Quistis briefing about the events happening in the world that might concern the SeeDs, and then they were dismissed. The rest of the day would be free to all of them, unless they were assigned to do the world patrolling or their jobs needed their attention._

_As for his job, Irvine was the instructor of both gun shooting and sneak attack tactics. Needless to say, he was one of the best instructors in Galbadia Garden. He and Selphie left Balamb Garden after the Ultimecia War, both contented to give back to the Garden that raised them. Last he heard, Selphie was still reconstructing Trabia Garden, and a rumor about her dream of building the biggest Quad was spread throughout the Gardens. Spooky, he thought._

_Well, it didn't sound like a rumor to him at all. He wouldn't be surprised if Selphie actually made the whole Trabia Garden into a giant Quad, and every cadet in Trabia was required to join the festival committee._

_Irvine would constantly travel back to Balamb Garden to visit his old friends, so he wasn't too oblivious about the changes happening in Balamb. He was shocked though, when he found out about Seifer and Squall. But it came to realization that they have had 'something' going on back since childhood. Irvine was the only one who remembered it, but he kept his silence, hoping that his two friends would find the love that was lost because of the GF back again. However, Rinoa and Laguna were completely out of the blue, and his jaw dropped to the ground when the girl accepted the proposal. But then again, just like what Seifer said: If they're happy, why not?_

_Seeing that his friends had all found their love, however, made Irvine felt extremely lonely for being the only one who didn't have anybody to be with. He felt even more lonely when the coldest winter hit Galbadia, and he was shivering in the cold nights under the covers in his room, even when the room was well heated. Maybe he was just a romanticist, but he really hated the lonely feelings. That's why he always dated girls, since they flocked to him and he was afraid of loneliness._

_However, it really didn't help since eventually, they would have left him, and he would be alone again._

_Even though nobody realized, Irvine Kinneas was suffering from depression. Doctor Kadowaki had perscribed him lithium and some other milder medicines to help him go about his daily business, but it didn't work very well. His refusal to take the drugs was one of the reasons. The only time he ever felt happy and back to his old cowboy-self was when he was back in Balamb Garden._

_Back with his friends._

_That's why he always escaped to Balamb Garden whenever he felt the Galbadia Garden didn't need him, including this fateful day._

_The day he would finally be cured of his depression._

"IRVINE!" the hyperactive voice roared as if Quetzecotl had been summoned to attack him. His eyes snapped open, and glared upwards at the blonde, who sat comfortablely at his stomach, grinning down at him.

"Alright, alright. I'm up..." Irvine grunted, flipping Zell onto the mattress before climbing out of bed. He yawned, and stretched like a cat before walking clumsily towards the bathroom, bumping his head into the wall during the trip, caused Zell to fall back onto the bed, laughing hysterically.

Irvine glared, picking up his toothbrush, "Shut up, Zell."

"Love ya too, Irvy."

_Walking down the Balamb hallway, which always made Irvine always feel more joyful than walking down the Galbadia hallway, for some reason. ::Wonder why it makes such difference?:: thought Irvine, sitting down on the edge of the fountain, looking around mindlessly. Cadets and SeeDs walked by, nodding at him out of respect that he'was one of the Elite SeeDs, and girls giggled in the far corner, talking about his cuteness and the rumor of him being the "virgin killer"._

_Heck, he only slept with those who were willing, and most of them were NOT virgins._

_Wait, all of them were not virgins. What was he thinking?_

_The noise from the cafetaria, however, pulled him out of his thoughts a little too roughly. He turned around, and saw students surround the place where the commotion was. Getting up, he walked over to take a peek at what was going on._

_A beautiful girl, who wore a SeeD uniform with a badge that indicated she worked in the library, was arguing with Zell Dincht, and the fight was getting hotter and hotter. She accused him of being a liar, and cheater, and a faggot. The last one really striked the blonde, and he blushed furiously, his hand lashed out and almost slapped the girl when he stopped abruptly, turning his heels to leave._

_"We're finished," he said to the girl without turning._

_Zell brushed through the crowd, and passed the watching Irvine. He was in such a fury that he didn't even recognize his best friend, and stormed down to his dorm. The crowd dissassembled immediately, everyone went about their own business, and occasionally talking about the event. As for Irvine, he ran after his friend, knowing that Zell would be at his most vulnerable, depressed state after that fight, and he would need someone._

_He arrived in front of Zell's dorm room, and knocked three times, then two times. It was the "secret knock" between the Elite SeeDs, invented by Selphie Tilmitt, though only Zell and Selphie use them, and Irvine remembered it. _

_Moments later, the door was opened, revealing a red-eyed Zell with a box of tissues._

_"Zell..." Irvine stammered, not knowing what to say._

_"Shut up and just come in."_

_Well, ok... he still hasn't lost his sense of humor, it seemed..._

_Irvine entered the room, which to him was shockingly clean and neat, and filled with martial arts and anime posters. In his mind, he never pictured Zell to be a clean person, much less keeping his room in a neat fashion. He stood by the table, waiting for the shorter blonde to sit down on his mattress before sitting besides him._

_After a long silence, Irvine asked, "Are you... ok?"_

_"Hell no," Zell responded with a glare, "Do I even _LOOK _like I'm ok!?_ _How can you even ask that, Kinneas!?"_

_Irvine blushed slightly in embarrasement, cursing himself for being so insensitive. "Sorry."_

_Zell sighed, and reached up to pat Irvine on his arms. "Nah, I'm sorry for taking my misery out on ya."_

_Irvine shrugged, "Hey, that's what friends are for, right?" _

_Such a statement earned Irvine a cute smile from Zell._

_It was after such an encounter that Irvine and Zell became close friends, even closer than they were to others. They e-mailed each other daily, talking about random stuff between their friends and their interests. Surprisingly, at least to both of them, they both loved the Triple Triad with great enthusiasm. Their similar main goal was to beat Squall in a card game, since the brunette had been crowned the "King of the Cards" for the nth time. _

_The did try. They really did. First they teamed up against the Lion, yet they lost so miserably that Seifer laughed at them for weeks. Then they asked Squall to not use any high-level cards, yet they still lost because of Zell's one careless move. Finally, they stole all his cards that were higher than level 6, yet because of their countless tries, the duo didn't have any high level cards either. The result was, inevitably, a big failure._

_Zell jumped up and tried to kill Seifer for laughing at him non-stop, but Irvine and Squall pulled the two apart. After the great "Card Battle of the century," as Irvine liked to call it, the losing side buried themselves in the libraries of Balamb and Galbadia Garden to dig up any useful information regarding Triple Triads. They even went as far as to track the "Queen of Cards" down, and begged her to teach them some new tricks, only to be beaten by Squall yet again._

_So it came to the fateful day where the duo went to a bar near Trabia, after they escaped from Selphie's babbling regarding the new Quad and Festival Committee. The two started with beer, and about half an hour into the drinks, one of them suggested something harder, and they started trying Gin, then cocktails, and finally, straight dry Vodka._

_Two, three hours later after Irvine and Zell walked into the bar, they were so drunk that the bartender had to call a cab and toss the two into the backseat before the poor driver could take them back to the hotel they were staying at. How they managed to get to Zell's room was still a mystery that remains unsolved, but they did._

_And the next thing Irvine remembered was waking up with Zell in his arms, both of them naked, and a severe headache that was even worse than Ultimecia's Apocalypse. _

_After the event, Irvine went back to Galbadia and Zell returned to Balamb, both never exchanged a single word. When Quistis inquired, Zell just said he was busy when Irvine used the same excuse, which was why Selphie got very suspicious and decided to made it her business to see the two rebuild their friendship._

_She put down her work on Trabia Garden and started stalking Irvine first, following the cowboy day and night (yes, she even slept in his dorm for the sake of it) and bombarded the poor man with questions regarding the awkwardness between him and Zell. By the fourth day (which was the world record for a man to stand against Selphie's nagging) he caved in, confessed the drunken night to the Headmistress of Trabia._

_Selphie was surprised at first, not because her friend was gay (since she's a large yaoi fan and Seifer and Squall was not enough to satisfy her thirst) but how Irvine and Zell handled this matter in such insensitive way. She smacked Irvine for fleeing the scene, and yelled at him for hurting Zell even though the cowboy didn't mean it. Then, a busybody that she was, Selphie arranged a meeting between the two boys in Balamb Garden's cafetaria, after curfew, with hotdogs and coffee around._

_Zell and Irvine sat down at the table in the middle of the empty cafetaria, neither of them looking at each other. Two plates of hotdogs set in front of Zell, and both of them had a cup of coffee to accompany the meal. Unlike the normal Zell Dincht, the hotdogs still remained in the plates, untouched, and the blonde didn't seem to be focusing on how to eat the delicious treats. _

_It was after a full ten minutes before Irvine broke the silence, stirring his coffee absent-mindedly. "Um, Zell... look..."_

_"What?" the blonde interrupted, though he never looked up from his own black liquid._

_Irvine scratched the back of his neck, "About that night..." he paused, finding himself tongue-tied._

_The suffocating silence filled the cafetaria again, making the peeping tom Selphie almost died of worry when Zell got up from his seat abruptly, knocking the chair off in the process. "Look," the blonde started, "It's ok. It was nothing. We were both drunk. That was just casual sex." Zell said, and started to leave._

_His route was, however, stopped by Irvine's firm grip on his wrist. The cowboy's eyes were filled with sadness and terror, as he stuttered his next sentence. "Yo... You're not... not serious, are... are you? I- I mean, I... It's not... It's not casual sex... not... not for me..."_

_"Then what is it!?" asked Zell impatiently, and when Irvine didn't answer right away, he turned to leave again, trying his best to shake off the iron grip on his wrist._

_"It's because..._

"Earth to Irvine! Yo, man, Earth to Irvine!" Irvine jolted from his seat, turning his dazed eyes back to the beautiful man in front of him, whose clear blue eyes were staring at him teasingly, a hand waving in front of him to call to his attention. Irvine lifted his eyebrow, and downed his morning coffee with one gulp.

Zell literally jumped into the cowboy's lap, and encircled his arms around his lover's neck as Irvine wrapped his arms around Zell's waist. "What were you thinking?" Zell asked curiously, snuggling closer to his love.

"Oh, nothing..." Irvine shrugged, "Just that night in the cafetaria, which later appeared on the ever-so-popular doujinshi-"

" 'Men in Tights?' " Zell finished the sentence, making a face at the name of Selphie's yaoi doujinshi that published all around the Planet, with manga, fanfics, discussions, and everything an otaku can think of regarding the men who saved the Planet from Ultimecia.

"Exactly."

Zell rolled his eyes, and leaned in, his face stopping a few inches before Irvine's. "Ne," the blonde purred, "Tell me again... What you said to me that night..."

"Do I have to!?"

"Yes."

A heavy sigh, "Alright..."

"It's because I love you... and would you marry me, Zell Dincht...? Though it may not be a legal marriage... I still want you by my side, now and forever."

-End of Chapter III


End file.
